The Austin Police Department is holding a listening session tonight Credit: via Getty Images

The Austin Police Department begins a second round of listening sessions tonight at the Carver Library in East Austin.

The department is seeking input from the public on its “strategic plan,” a set of goals to guide the department’s policies and priorities over the next five years.

Interim Chief of Police Robin Henderson will attend tonight’s session, lasting from 6:30-8pm, to explain what the strategic plan is and why APD needs citizen feedback. “Hearing from our community, as they share their insights, is key to helping us craft a strategic plan for your police department that is built on collaboration and trust,” the chief said.

APD held a first round of listening sessions in June. “For this session, we would like to dig deeper and present our five top strategic priorities to our community in an open-house format,” the department said in a press release. The top five priorities (in no particular order, according to APD) are an interesting hybrid of New Age and cop speak: “Developing Our Workforce,” “Enhancing Organizational Capacity,” “Fostering Leadership Excellence,” “Engaging Our Community,” and “Protecting Austin.”

This article appears in September 22 • 2023.

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Brant Bingamon arrived in Austin in 1981 to attend UT and immediately became fascinated by the city's music scene. He's spent his adult life playing in bands and began writing for the Chronicle in 2019, covering criminal justice, the death penalty, and public school issues. He has two children, Noah and Eryl, and lives with his partner Adrienne on the Eastside.